A Letter from our Leaders

Dear GIC Members and Friends, Welcome to the Global Interdependence Center’s 2020 Annual Report. We would like to begin by extending our sincere well wishes to our GIC Community in the hope that you are staying healthy and safe. We would also like to offer our gratitude to those who supported the front-lines in the battle against COVID-19. The GIC experienced a unique year of programming which included a robust beginning with four in-person conferences in February. Our first conference of 2020, on AI and Machine Learning, took place at the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center in La Jolla, California with the UCSD Rady School of Management. After which, GIC returned to Sarasota, Florida for our Fourth Annual Financial Literacy Day, held in partnership with the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee Campus and Cumberland Advisors. At the end of the month, GIC hosted its second delegation trip to Mexico City in partnership with the Banco de México and our third conference on Sovereign Debt Restructuring, in partnership with LeBow College of Business. In one very short month, we featured Federal Reserve Bank Presidents Loretta Mester, Raphael Bostic, and Charles Evans, as well as Governor of the Banco de México, Alejandro Diaz de Leon. Like many organizations, the GIC transitioned to virtual programming at the onset of the pandemic, which allowed us to host an impressive 27 Executive Briefings and Members Only Roundtables from March through December. Our virtual programming demonstrated the breadth and depth of the virtual conference stage as we reached over 2,800 audience members in ten months. Many of these Executive Briefings were a part of our Analyzing Pandemics: Economic and Policy Impacts, which was launched alongside the David R. Kotok Global Healthcare Series. In March 2020, GIC proudly established the David R. Kotok Global Healthcare Series, thanks to a generous legacy gift offered by Mr. Kotok. The GIC sought to leverage Mr. Kotok’s seed money by matching the gift and raising additional funds through the rest of the year, reaching nearly $38,000 in new donations. The David R. Kotok Global Healthcare Series serves as a multi-year live and virtual program series focused on the role health and healthcare policy play in the interdependent global community. The series serves as a neutral forum to elevate, vet, and disseminate objective information about how changing interdependencies in a world where pandemics transcend governmental borders and influence fiscal policy, monetary policy, finance, trade, politics and culture. Throughout these Briefings, we were able to examine COVID-19 and its impact on a multitude of areas such as monetary policy, geopolitics, the economies of the US, China and Europe, AI/Machine Learning, the energy sector, small business, climate change, higher education, the role of nurses, and more. The resources from these and all of our events are available online for the public to access free of charge. The Global Interdependence Center College of Central Bankers (CCB), established in 2018, also saw an impressive year in 2020. We were delighted to announce the induction of seven new Fellows from Europe, South America and the U.S.! We look forward to their involvement in GIC’s future programs in which we invite our Fellows to continue to share their unique insight and knowledge following careers as leaders in global Central Banking. As a reminder, our website has an abundance of GIC and CCB resources available to the general public including videos, presentation material, articles, blogs, and media coverage. We invite you to visit our website to access these resources and explore opportunities for membership. In closing, we extend our heartfelt appreciation to our Members and friends for supporting our organization through your generous donations and for your Membership renewals. We are looking forward to our return to in-person programming soon and hope you will join us. Thank you for making our mission a reality and for your unwavering support during this challenging year.